Monday, May 4, 2015

Catproofing garden beds

Yes, you read the title right. My neighbors got a beautiful kitten last fall that has grown into a handsome cat. A handsome outdoor cat. This cat--named Luigi--likes to dig. And while I like cats--I have one of my own who I keep indoors--I'm not fond of having beds built so they can turn them into expensive litter boxes.

Looking around online, I found several remedies. One was to lay down chicken wire; it makes it difficult for cats to dig and they find it uncomfortable. People who do this use wire cutters to create holes big enough for seedlings. That sounded like a recipe for disaster to me--I think I have effectively established how accident prone I am. Me with wire cutters and sharp wire fencing? Yeah, that can't go well.

However, I found a similar remedy with orange snow fencing (and now I cannot find the site where I read about this). It's the same idea but you can use scissors to cut bigger holes, it's less expensive and easier to use, and I won't have to worry about contracting tetanus.

So I spent a couple of hours a couple of weeks ago topping off the dirt, laying down the fencing, and fastening it with metal clips.

It isn't pretty but it does the job, the holes are big enough where I can plant seedlings in them or pull out things like beets and carrots. If I need to make the opening bigger, scissors will do the trick. And hopefully, it will annoy the heck out of Luigi, who's a nice enough cat but needs to understand the law of the jungle. Mainly, DON'T MESS WITH A COUGAR'S GARDEN.

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About Me

This blog is called Feral Homemaking because unlike other blogs out there, I am not a stay-at-home mom (no kids, actually, though I love being an aunt) or a full-time homemaker. I work a paying job that I quite enjoy. I was never one of those people who couldn't do basic things like laundry, but I had a lot to learn, and am still learning.
This blog is for anyone--anyone at all--who enjoys cooking, who wants to pick up different ways to save money, or who wants to improve their homemaking skills. Even if you work full time, you have to eventually have to do this stuff.
At any rate, you'll all feel better about the skills you already have since, frankly, you'll hear more about my misadventures than my triumphs.